Pitcher Rick Peterson was picked by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 21st round of the 1976 amateur draft and spent four years in their minor league system. In 67 career games, he went 6-11 with a 5.67 ERA. He debuted with the 1976Niagara Falls Pirates, going 1-0 with one save a 4.20 ERA in 5 games, averaging a walk per inning and over a strikeout per inning. In '77, he was only 1-1 with a 8.23 ERA for the Salem Pirates, allowing over two baserunners per inning, and was also with the Charleston Patriots, he had a 3-3 record, one save and a 3.00 ERA and only walked 12 in 60 innings.

In 1978, Rick was 1-3, 7.50 for Salem, again topping two baserunners per frame. A year later, Peterson had a 0-3, 7.31 line in four starts for Salem to conclude his career toiling on the mound, though he also made appearances while coaching in 1980, 1982, 1983, and 1988.